Payment & Booking Policy

Accepted Payment Methods

• PayNow (preferred)
• PayLah
• WISE (can be used to transfer directly to my PayNow account)
• Bank Transfer
• PayPal (subject to a 7% surcharge)
• Cash (accepted only for final payment, not for booking fees)

Booking Confirmation & Booking Fee

Your photography booking is confirmed only once the required 50% non-refundable booking fee has been received. Agreeing to a date and time without payment does not secure the booking.

• What the Booking Fee Covers

  The booking fee reserves the Photographer's time for your photography session and covers work carried out before the shoot, including consultation, discussion, planning, location advice, wardrobe guidance, and other preparation provided specifically for the booking.

• Acceptance of Terms

  By placing the booking fee, you confirm your acceptance of the Service Agreement and Privacy Policy applicable to the photography service.

• Payment Details

  Payment details will generally be provided after the photography requirements have been discussed and the Photographer is satisfied that the booking is ready to proceed.

• Same-Day Payment Requirement

  Once payment details have been provided, please place the booking fee within the same day. If payment is delayed, please check with the Photographer before making the transfer, as the requested date and time may no longer be available.

• Payment Reference

  Kindly use your full name as the payment reference when making the transfer.

Booking Fee Validity & Scheduling Window

All bookings and booking fees are valid for up to three (3) months. The following guidelines explain how the three-month validity period is applied in different situations.

• Booking Without Confirmed Date

  Where a booking is confirmed without a specific photography date being selected, the booking fee is valid for up to three (3) months from the date the booking is made.

  If a photography date is selected later, or if a previously confirmed date is subsequently postponed, the three-month period continues to be calculated from the original booking date or originally booked photography date, as applicable. The validity period does not restart when a new date is selected.

• Expiry of the Booking Fee

  If the photography session is not scheduled and completed within the applicable three-month period, the booking fee will be forfeited.

• Extensions

  If you anticipate that you may be unable to schedule or complete the photography session within the applicable period, please contact the Photographer as early as reasonably possible. Any extension is discretionary and is not automatically granted.

Rescheduling & Cancellations

• Reserved Time

  Once your photography date is confirmed, the Photographer reserves that time exclusively for you. The Photographer will turn down other photography assignments, business opportunities, administrative work, and personal commitments that conflict with the agreed date and time.

  The reserved time may extend beyond the photography session itself. The Photographer generally spaces out photography assignments and other commitments so that sufficient time is available for preparation, travel, rest, recovery, and other responsibilities before and after a shoot. As a result, one confirmed photography session may require several days of the Photographer's calendar to be kept flexible.

  A change to the confirmed date can therefore affect more than the hours originally scheduled for the photography session. It may also disrupt surrounding time that has already been kept available and opportunities that may have been declined to protect the booking.

• Rescheduling Requests

  Once a booking has been confirmed, any request to change the agreed photography date is subject to the Photographer's availability and discretion. Rescheduling is not guaranteed.

  Unforeseeable circumstances, including health issues or other unexpected events, can sometimes make it difficult to keep an agreed photography date. The Photographer understands that such circumstances can happen. However, even where the reason is genuine, changing a confirmed booking may still result in lost opportunities and disruption to commitments that the Photographer has already declined or rearranged.

  For this reason, each rescheduling request will be considered based on its impact on the Photographer's schedule.

• Rescheduling Fees

  A rescheduling fee may apply where a change causes disruption to the Photographer's schedule. Where a rescheduling fee is applicable, the Photographer will inform you of the fee and the specific amount before the rescheduling is confirmed. No rescheduling fee will be imposed without prior notice of the applicable amount.

• Validity Period

  Any replacement date remains subject to the Photographer's availability and the original three-month booking validity period. Rescheduling does not restart or extend the three-month validity period.

• Cancellation

  If you decide not to proceed with the photography service, the booking fee remains non-refundable.

Why Rescheduling Matters

A Booking Is More Than a Time Slot

A confirmed booking takes a piece of my calendar off the market. As a freelance photographer, I personally manage my photography work as well as the many other commitments that keep the business running. When I reserve a date for you, I will turn down other opportunities that conflict with that time, whether they involve another photography assignment, a meeting, a planning session, a vendor or business appointment, administrative work, or even a personal commitment.

This means that the impact of a booking isn't limited to the hours when we are actually taking photographs. I may also keep time before and after the session available for preparation, travel, rest, recovery, editing, and other responsibilities.

'It's Only One Rescheduling Request'

Here's something worth imagining. Suppose you're a freelancer with a calendar full of potential work. One client asks you to keep a particular afternoon available, so you turn down other opportunities and reserve it for them. Later, they say, 'I'm sorry, something came up. Can we do it another day?' You agree because it's a reasonable request.

Now imagine that every client says the same thing.

Each individual client may genuinely have a good reason. Each person may also reasonably think, 'It's only one time. Surely rescheduling just for me won't make much difference.' And they're right in one sense: one rescheduling request usually isn't going to destroy a freelancer's schedule.

The problem appears when the same thinking is repeated across many bookings. Most other clients may keep their original appointments, so the Photographer's schedule can remain manageable. But if enough clients each assume that their own rescheduling is harmless because it's only happening once, reserved time can gradually turn into gaps that cannot be filled.

Why the Rule Exists

That's why there is a reason behind every booking rule. The rule isn't there because one client cannot be accommodated. It's there because the same arrangement needs to remain fair and workable when applied to every client.

I believe we are all responsible people who understand the value of keeping a promise. When you ask me to take on your photography assignment, I accept your request and reserve the agreed time specifically for you. I do this because I want to keep my commitment to you. In return, when you schedule a photography session with me, I ask that you also treat the agreed date and time as a commitment.

If circumstances make it difficult for you to keep that commitment, I understand that life can sometimes get in the way. I will consider reasonable rescheduling requests where possible. However, I should not be expected to bear the full consequences of a change after I have already reserved the time and potentially declined other opportunities to keep my commitment to you.

I simply ask that you consider the time that has already been reserved and the opportunities that may have been declined to keep that time available.

In short: please don't think of a confirmed booking as just an appointment. It's a piece of time that we've both set aside, and a commitment that we make to each other.

Remaining Balance

• Payment Due Date

  The remaining 50% balance is due on the day of the photography session, unless a different payment arrangement has been agreed in writing.

• Before Post-Production Begins

  Full payment must be received before the Photographer begins post-production work, including filtering the photographs and preparing them for Client selection.

• Outstanding Balances

  The Photographer will not begin the photo-selection or post-production process while any outstanding balance remains unpaid, unless otherwise agreed in writing.

• Alternative Arrangements

  Clients who require a different payment arrangement should discuss this with the Photographer before confirming the booking.

Privacy Buyout Option

• Privacy Guarantee (Buyout)

  If you prefer your photographs to remain unpublished, a Privacy Guarantee (Buyout) is available at an additional fee.

• What the Fee Covers

  The privacy buyout compensates the Photographer for giving up the portfolio, promotional, educational, social media, competition, and other publication opportunities that would otherwise be available under the applicable photography agreement.

• When to Arrange It

  Privacy arrangements should be discussed and confirmed before the photography session. Please refer to the Service Agreement and Privacy Policy for further information.

Refunds & Exceptions

• Booking Fee

  The booking fee is non-refundable. It reserves the Photographer's time and covers work associated with the booking, including pre-shoot consultation, discussion, planning, advice, and preparation.

• Other Payments

  Other payments are also generally non-refundable once the corresponding service or work has been provided or commenced.

• Exceptional Circumstances

  Where circumstances arise that materially affect the photography service, the Photographer and client may communicate and consider a reasonable practical arrangement based on the circumstances of the booking.

• No Automatic Future Entitlement

  Any permitted postponement, cancellation, refund, or other arrangement does not automatically create a general right to a refund or rescheduling for future bookings.

Closing Message

This payment policy is designed to keep the booking process clear and fair while allowing the Photographer to reserve time, provide preparation and advice, and give each confirmed photography session the attention it requires.

Once a booking is confirmed, the reserved time may no longer be available to other clients. The booking fee therefore represents more than a simple payment towards the final photographs - it also secures the Photographer's time and the work undertaken for the booking.

If you have any questions about payment, scheduling, or your booking arrangements, please contact me before placing the booking fee.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

Here are answers to some common questions about payments and booking arrangements. If your situation is not covered here, please contact me before confirming your booking.